


About 3x12: Fools

by LouiseLouise



Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: Character Development, Mention of Shannon Diaz, Meta
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-09
Updated: 2020-04-09
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:00:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,594
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23548045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LouiseLouise/pseuds/LouiseLouise
Summary: My thoughts about episode 3x12 "Fools" aka How I had more to say about Eddie Diaz than I expected, and it's a good thing.Originally postedon tumblr, beta bynilshki. Art by me. All remaining mistakes are mine.
Relationships: Christopher Diaz & Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV), Evan "Buck" Buckley & Maddie Buckley
Kudos: 14





	About 3x12: Fools

  


Okay so first, **Eddie and Chris**! 

I’m so happy to see them deal with issues that were there since the beginning.

Since season 2, we’ve seen Eddie struggling with the guilt of abandoning Shannon and Chris when they needed him. We see him raise Chris the way he himself was raised, and deal with his disability that same way, the “suck it up and move one” way. So, not very healthy and probably not the best way to deal with disability. But still a very interesting dynamic to show on tv, especially since the story has him evolve from that. Slowly, but surely.

_FYI I’m not saying it makes Eddie a bad person. He’s doing his best with the tools he has. And he’s learning._

I loved how the storyline played. 

How Eddie assumes Chris was pressured by his classmates into trying to skateboard only to find out that it was Christopher’s idea. It shows us that even if Eddie’s told Christopher he could do anything, he sees him as vulnerable. It gives us Eddie not listening to Ms Flores’ side of the story but instead just being his grumpy self and blaming her, which is a nice reminder that Eddie still needs to learn to listen to other people’s side of the story.

There’s progress here though, since he goes back to apologize to her for his harsh reaction, something I’d love to see him do with Buck. _No I’m not over that grocery fight_.

We see Eddie reevaluate the image he has of his son, how he first refuses to talk about limitations but figures out a way to do so, because he actually listens to what Carla, Buck and Ms Flores tells him. _Damn that horse metaphor was amazing, and something it took me years to learn myself_. And we don’t know if Eddie still has therapy with Frank, but I guess even a few sessions were an helpful addition to Eddie’s growth.

So Eddie finds a way to relate to Chris by looking into his own limitations, and maybe it’s easier dealing with black thumbs than CP, but the point is that he talked to him in a way that Chris could understand, he was honest but still hopeful and promised him he’d be there to help Chris explore whatever he wants to explore. _And I totally didn’t cry. At all. No_.

Now I just need Eddie to learn to apply that to others, too. Because, no, I didn’t like his comment to Buck about still being in his _I do what I want_ phase. I know it plays as a joke but it’s a little dismissive and Buck doesn’t deserve that, okay? Especially when the conversation leads to finding a way for Chris to try skateboarding (we don’t know who found that contraption they come with at the park, so maybe I choose to say it’s Buck, because it’s such a Buck move okay?)

 **I loved that Carla was there** with Eddie, for Eddie and Chris. There’s not enough of her in the show (unless more of her means hurting her like they did Josh, then I don’t want it). She takes care of Chris, she knows the teachers so we can assume she’s the first contact with the school (she already knows Ms Flores, she is the one they call when Chris falls), and helping with the homeworks, and meals. We see how she’s a big part of Christopher’s education so it made sense she was there. 

Then back at the house, we can see how she’s kind and caring but she sees Chris in a different light, and she’s not afraid to tell Eddie what she thinks, which is good. Eddie needs more people telling him to change his bad habits.

I’m still a little worried about Chris saying **tsunamis aren’t a big deal** , because he either says that to appear strong and badass like the popular kid he seems to be, the same kid who just wants to skateboard even if it’s dangerous, or he’s still having problem processing what happened? I hope we see more about that later on.

Now, about **Ms Flores**. I like her. She’s smart and kind, and wise and a cutie. But I did not like how she and Eddie had a cliché meet cute. I like Eddie having a love interest and I think his character development has been well done and he's ready to date but that scene was very cliché. And cheap. I hope if they develop their relationship in the next episodes they do a better job.

 **I loved how Eddie credited Shannon for Chris’ reading skills**. It was sweet and honest and I see it as him making peace with the past, with the guilt of being absent, accepting that he wasn’t there to raise Chris the first years. He still feels he’s not enough, not a good father. That’s Eddie’s own limitations. So it was nice to hear Ms Flores say that yes, he’s doing a good job and yes, Christopher’s enjoying it. Eddie needs the reassurance. _And I’m not a parent but aren’t all parents afraid of not being good enough? Maybe Eddie needs to join a group for first time parents dealing with doubts and sharing experiences, to see he’s not alone? Or maybe just spend time with Hen and Karen?_

On a side note, I loved the teacher’s corny puns. And later Maddie makes one too, with the semicolon. That was cool too.

-

 **The poker scene**! I loved the Buckley siblings faux rivalry and the spaghetti western music, it was fun. And I loved seeing Josh here. I’m definitely here for more Buck & Josh scenes, either friendship or dating, _as long as it’s not a means to lead to Buddie because Josh doesn’t deserve to be just a plot device_. They’re both single, both admit they have nothing outside their work, no one in their life but their coworkers, so they definitely have things in common to talk about.

I like how Buck doesn’t seem to mind being single, but can still admit it’s hard to meet someone. I’ve always seen him as someone craving connection, who used to believe random hookups could either satisfy this need or lead to something significant, and since season 1 we’ve seen him experience relationships, love and breakups and now he seems more honest about what he wants, and less worried about his current relationship status. 

I of course love how **Josh jokes about Maddie setting him with Buck** and there’s no need for any _no homo_ joke in return. Like I said in [this post](https://theladyandthewolves.tumblr.com/post/613506583599726592/spoilers-for-3x12-i-know-we-all-wantbelieve) either Buck is revealed queer and no one bats an eye at it, or he’s straight with no need to point it out, which is healthy and what we need in terms of representation. Men being confident enough to not feel threatened in their masculinity by a queer joke. Either way, I think it’s good writing.

 **Now, Josh’s date**. Josh deserves to be happy and those two horrible men deserve to rot in jail. Talking about it, doesn’t it seem a bit much as a scam just to steal his phone? They talked multiple times and once at least for 2 hours, went on a movie date… they had his keys and probably his address in his wallet but didn’t rob his place? I don’t know, it feels over the top. Beating him up has a hate crime vibe but the dialogue doesn’t support that, so. I don’t know. Anyway, if anything bad happens to Josh again, I will riot. 

**Another person I’ll riot for is Michael**. No one is allowed to hurt him. But more seriously, I love how we see the Grant Nash family communicate through this trial, how they’re not always honest at first, because they’re scared, but they always end up sharing and opening their hearts. _But I will riot, okay_.

 **Buck wearing pink**. That’s all. Okay no that’s not all. Buck reading a book about a disabled athlete while in the hospital, and though we don’t know if it’s right after the accident or after the surgery, it’s still relevant to what he was going through. It’s consistent with what we’ve been shown about Buck being curious and enjoying doing research about what’s happening in his life or in the life of his loved ones, and this time what helped him is also gonna help Eddie, and Chris. And he’s wearing pink, which is a priceless bonus.

So **the emergency calls** were about the people we choose to be close to, as a friend, a lover, a spouse, and of course how those people can play us, use us, betray us.

Can I say I enjoyed seeing Jesse realize he needs new friends? Seeing the 2 jerks being arrested, as well as the horrible husband? I loved the parallel between Jesse (first call, on the merry go round) needing better friends, and Joan (the woman with the old bullet wound) deserving a better spouse, because it puts friendship and marriage on the same level of importance.

I also liked the use of texts/emojis in the first date call. It was visually different and fun and I’m happy those two got their happy ending. 

So all in all, maybe this episode was a little less overwhelming than the last one (because damn, Chimney’s story has all the feels) but I liked it, and that last scene at the park with Chris on a skateboard totally melted my heart and I’m here for more of those.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading this not-fic!  
> Like always, I welcome every kudo, emoji and comment ♥ Just keep in mind that I try to avoid spoilers for upcoming episodes as much as I can, if you decide to comment!


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